by Shania Tyler
No one loved her. Not until she grew up. It wasn’t until high school that guys started looking at her, and she’d taken advantage of the attention. She liked attention, but what she wasn’t sure of was if she liked the idea of being an elf. She decided not to dwell on it. Her parents hadn’t wanted her, and she wanted nothing to do with him.
Meg said, “I think I always knew.”
“You did?” Piper asked.
Meg nodded. “There was just always this connection with nature and—”
Piper rolled her eyes and turned away. Meg was such a hippie.
Her friend laughed. “I’m serious, Pipes. Don’t you just love being outdoors? More than anyone else? It was what brought us all together to begin with. You, me, Kelly, and some of the rest of our friends. We loved lying in the grass and climbing trees.”
“Most kids like those things.”
“And do most kids still do those things in college?” Meg shot back.
Piper closed her mouth. They weren’t supposed to talk about their late-night tree-climbing adventures. Piper had a reputation to uphold. She was not a hippie. She was a fashionista, singer, dancer, and soon-to-be famous celebrity.
She hoped to be famous, at least.
Celebrities didn’t climb trees. She was sure of that. Almost sure of it.
Movement at the other end of the long table caught her eye, and she watched as Theo took a seat at the head. He could not be farther from her, and she’d spotted him in a dark room full of people.
His eyes seemed to find hers as he adjusted himself in his seat.
They stared at one another in open awareness.
Kelly leaned down the table excitedly and said, “Guys, Fedora just told me that she was at a dinner with the Evaness and some humans a few years ago and this human who was new to Asea had a lot of Hot Wine and got really trussed, but was able to understand the language.” She shrugged. “It’s worth a shot if you want to try it. I know Mason told me that eating the food and just spending time in Asea would help you understand the magic language faster, but maybe drinking is the way, if only temporarily.”
“Trussed?” Meg asked.
Kelly shrugged. “Her term, not mine, but I think she means wasted.”
“What’s Hot Wine?” Piper asked.
Mason said, “It’s from Mezzin, where the dragons live. It’s a brew you drink warm.” Then to Kelly, he said, “And she didn’t mean wasted. She means trussed.”
“Trussed?” Piper asked. She didn’t usually drink to the levels it sounded like Kelly was talking about, so wasn’t sure about any of this. “What’s trussed?”
Mason grinned. “You’ll just have to try it and find out, but don’t worry, we’ll make sure nothing happens to you. I swear that on my life.”
“Yeah, we got you,” Ethan said with a serious tone.
Meg said, “I’ll try it.” Ever the adventurer.
Piper rolled her eyes. She really wanted to know the language, but didn’t know about Hot Wine or getting trussed. But, it was a vacation, and she was amongst friends, so why not? “Let’s do it.”
Mason spoke to a staff member and the woman rushed away. He then turned to Meg and Piper and said, “One cup should do it.”
Piper asked Ethan. “Hey, by the way, why didn’t you tell us we were elves? Could you not sense it?”
Ethan turned to Piper. “I can only sense that you stink.”
Piper punched him again.
“Ow!”
Meg laughed.
Maurice said in clear English, “He’s been around you your whole life. He probably wouldn’t have thought her scent out of the ordinary while growing up.”
Piper stared at Maurice and wondered if there was an end to the hotness in Asea. He looked so much like Ethan, but she could never imagine Maurice in khakis. He gave off a huge bad boy vibe like Mason, but while Mason’s was more covert, Maurice did nothing to hide his true self. He wore dark jeans, and Piper just realized the graphic tee he wore was in English. “Ethan said you were from here.”
“I am,” Maurice said with a grin. “But I go to Earth on occasion. There are some really great party spots there.”
She bet there were.
The wine came in long wooden cups with steam coming from them. It smelled like more fruit, and Piper was not a fan.
Meg grabbed her cup and took a sip. “Mm,” she said before going back in. She looked at Piper over the rim of her cup, her blue eyes smiling, and finished it. When she was done, she put the cup on the table and grinned. “I feel… nothing.”
Piper stared at her, waiting something to happen, like Meg growing horns or something crazy. But nothing happened.
Meg then started speaking Chebar to the others and a conversation began.
Piper turned to her cup, stared at the surface of the dark drink, and then brought it to her mouth. It tasted like warm fruit punch, but with none of the artificial flavorings. It was all natural and actually tasty. She finished her cup and put it on the table.
Meg said, “E fela’ou wonte. E fela’ou like I simply had a warm drink of punch. It didn’t even have that alcohol taste or anything.”
Piper’s eyes widened. “Ne te’ voc’ouna Englsih.” She gasped. She’d been telling Meg that she wasn’t speaking English when she realized that neither was she. She could understand them.
Mason smiled. “You’re speaking Chebar now.”
“But I’m not drunk,” Piper replied.
“I told you that you wouldn’t be,” Mason said.
Kelly went over and gave Piper and Meg a hug. “Oh, it’s so great I don’t have to translate for you guys anymore.”
“You mean me,” Piper murmured.
Kelly laughed and pulled back. “Yay us!”
Meg said to Ethan, “I think I’m ready to present my experiment to the room.”
Mason said, “I’ll let everyone know what’s going on.” He moved toward the entrance with Ethan.
Piper grinned. She could understand everyone, so that meant… Her eyes moved down to the other end of the table and she stood.
Kelly asked, “Where are you going?”
Piper took a few steps and smiled over her shoulder. “To greet our host properly.”
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5
CHAPTER
FIVE
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Theo watched Mason walk away from the little party at the end of the table. He sucked his teeth when he realized what staying away from Piper meant. He’d have to stay away from all his friends. He watched them laughing and talking as the warm mugs were placed in front of Meg and Piper.
They were Hot Wine flutes, and Theo knew why the women had been willing to take them. He was also glad that they’d chosen to do so at his home where it was safe and not somewhere else were being trussed could mean death if they fell into the hands of the enemy. It forced one’s mental guards down and made them susceptible to the magic of others. It wasn’t the sort of thing one did unless they were surrounded by friends, but the same could be said about alcohol as well, he supposed.
When Mason and Ethan left the group, his eyes were drawn once again to Piper.
She grinned at him and Theo panicked, because he knew what she intended to do. She was planning to come to him. It was very bad idea, but even more so in her current state. She stood and began to walk toward him.
Theo stood and watched Piper turn to speak to Kelly and decided to move.
He disappeared into the crowd that stood amongst the other tables and paused to make sure he’d lost her.
He watched her stop in her tracks, and he grinned at his cleverness. Gods, she was heaven to look at. Her body was lean, but still very curvy. From this distance, he got her from every angle as she turned around to look for him.
“Ladies and gentlemen,” Mason said as he took to the center of the banquet hall. At his side stood Meg and in front of them wa
s a table with something covered in cloth.
This was Kelly’s little project she wanted to present, and Theo found himself watching just as intently as everyone else.
Mason started to speak again. “A few months ago, Kelly came to us.”
“You kidnapped her,” someone in the crowd shouted.
People laughed.
Mason lifted his head with pride, and his eyes found his wife. “I did kidnap her, and I’m not giving her back.”
Kelly covered her face with embarrassment, but when she looked up, her eyes were full of tears. There here hoots and howls in their favor. Theo smiled and silently wished them many centuries of happiness.
Mason continued, “Our history says that thousands of years ago, the gods came to us and mated with both the vampires and the elves, making their own blood lines and giving their offspring the responsibility of taking care of Asea, our earth. Each god promised their offspring their gift if their children promised to build a temple in their name. Then, once every hundred years, during the Year of Blessings, if their children ventured to that temple, they would receive that blessing.” He placed a fist over his heart and said, “I am Mason of the House of Seocan.”
A sound close to thunder broke out amongst the people as they went wild and began to bang on their tables. Vampires and elves alike, who held blood from Mason’s house, shouted, “Seocan,” over and over again. It was moving.
Seocan was the God of Light and Shadows, with his elves becoming the keepers of light and his vampires becoming the keepers of shadows. They were to keep the world’s time in balance, but balance had been thrown off three hundred years ago when Seocan’s temple was destroyed by the Evaness to prevent any elves from getting the power to bring back the most important light of all. The sun. Then, the Evaness had tried to slaughter all the Seocan elves who’d had the gift.
It had been the first stage of their takeover all those years ago and since then, Asea had been cast into blackness.
Until Mason had found a way to reach the gods directly on Talon Island and had been made the Lord of Shadows, a man who’d been prophesied to take the blackness out of the sky.
And a few months ago, he had. Now Asea had its stars back, but until an elf of Seocan’s line walked into the temple of Seocan and was blessed, there would be no sun or moon.
Ethan shouted, “I am Ethan of the House of Jinn.”
Another shout, louder than the first, filled the room. There were many Jinn elves. He was the God of Healing and Decay, and while there were many vampires with the power of decay, there were no elves who could heal, because the Evaness controlled most of the temples and Jinn’s temple was barred from slaves.
The only healer they had was Kelly, but no one understood how she’d unlocked her gifts. Many thought it was because of her goddess half, but no one was sure.
Which was probably where this little demonstration was going.
Mason said, “When Kelly came to us, her gifts had already been unlocked on Earth without her having to visit a temple of the gods here in Asea and we asked how this could be possible.”
“Isn’t she a goddess?” someone asked.
“Yes,” Mason agreed. “But she is also part elf like many of you.” Then he turned to Meg. “However, we may have found the reason Kelly can heal without going inside the temple of Jinn.”
Meg looked around the room and said, “Earlier this year, I was instructed by my teachers to design something that I wished to see built on our school’s campus.” She smiled at Kelly and said, “I called what I built a gazebo, because that was what I thought it was at the time, but what I didn’t tell my friend until later was that I’d seen the gazebo in a dream.”
Chatter swiftly filled the room.
Someone next to Theo whispered to another man, “She is of the House of Milena.”
Theo suspected the person to be correct. Milena was the Goddess of Sight, elves being the bearers of foresight and vampires the gift of hindsight.
Theo hadn’t known Meg was an elf, but this proved it. He wondered about Piper as well and looked to where he’d last seen her. She was gone.
Meg continued, “My gazebo, Kelly later revealed, is an exactly copy of the Temple of Jinn.”
More chatter.
Meg continued. “On Earth, those who worship gods don’t have to go to one temple or church. There are many scattered all around our planet, so we were thinking… the same thing might work for this planet as well.” She then took a cloth off the table and revealed a small temple. “Kelly placed her hand inside this temple and her powers were unlocked. So, what we wish to see is if it will work for an elf of the House of Jinn who isn’t half goddess.”
Theo was intrigued. If this worked, they would have healers and this would be another step toward ending the war once and for all. With healers, their men could fight longer.
“What about the other houses?” an elf asked.
Meg turned to him. “If it works, I can construct small temples for every house. Or, at least, the ones that I’ve dreamed about.”
Theo’s eyes widened. If they built the Temple of Seocan, they could bring back the sun and the prophecy would be fulfilled.
A man stepped out of the crowd and Theo knew who he was before he said, “I am Gamen from the House of Jinn. I’ll try it.”
Meg motioned toward the temple.
Gamen stepped forward and stuck his hand into the temple and touched it. His eyes went wide and his breath became labored. He then took his hand back and stared at it.
Did it work?
Another man, Tommas of the House of Orry, the God of Melody and Cacophony, came over to Gamen, pulled out a blade, and sliced into his arm. Bright blood bloomed around the wound. He presented himself to Gamen.
Gamen looked at his friend’s wound and placed his hand right over it.
The two men stood there with blood dripping to the floor.
Theo sucked his teeth and was about to call someone to clean the mess up.
“Gods,” Tommas whispered.
Gamen’s eyes widened, and he pulled his hand back.
Tommas used his shirt to wipe the blood residue away. The cut was gone. “I’m healed!”
Everyone was on their feet, shouting and hugging. This was a major turning point, and they had to keep this contained before the enemy found out.
Theo walked out of the crowd and went to Mason to say that very thing.
“The traitors are dead,” Mason replied, still excited about the demonstration. Music started from somewhere, and Theo felt the beginnings of a celebration.
“If the Evaness find out—”
“I know,” Mason said. “We’ll keep it quiet. We’ve already closed the doors and only allowed the most honorable of servants to remain in the room. We’ll make sure this stays between everyone here.”
Theo nodded. “There is much work to be done. I’ll have a servant clear a room so that Meg can begin building the temples. A room of temples. Who would have thought that possible?”
Mason laughed and clapped him on the shoulder. “Theo, enjoy the moment. You can work later. We’re closer now to defeating the Evaness.” Then he sobered and said, “And getting justice.”
Theo looked away and shook his head. He didn’t want to think about the many he’d lost over this war. But yes, there was much justice to be had by all and he’d see to it.
He started for the door, moving around the edge of the room and away from those who’d decided to dance. He was close to a corner when he felt a faint touch that nearly knocked him to the floor.
* * *
6
CHAPTER
SIX
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Warmth flooded Piper’s veins and the sound of her thumping heart filled her ears. She was hot, so very hot, but not in a horrible way. In fact, she felt amazing. Blood pulsed through her body, and it was as though her every cell was
on alert. Was this what it was like to be trussed?
Her vision became clearer, colors heightened, but it seemed everything but the man in front of her blurred.
Theo spun around and collapsed into the dark corner of the room. His dark eyes were wide, and his handsome face was set in fury. He took his hand from hers and immediately her warmth began to fade. The sounds of the music and the crowd around them were amplified and the colors around her dulled. She frowned in confusion and then look up into Theo’s angry eyes. He was breathing hard and quick, and he kept his body plastered against the wall.
Her eyes moved over him, taking in his dark suit and the gold chain that stood out against the flesh of his neck. For some reason, she wanted to touch him there. She wanted to touch his neck with her mouth. She laughed at the thought. She was obviously very… trussed, or whatever.
And horny.
Theo was so handsome, even while angry. His heavy brows were drawn together, and she’d never seen a man with such dark eyes before. Usually, dark eyes were simply brown, but something told Piper that no matter how much light she shined into Theo’s eyes, they would still be void of color. It made him all the more interesting.
In some ways, he was exactly what she’d pictured when she thought of a vampire. He was beautiful and pale, but she’d never expected to be drawn to one, especially not him, but if she were being serious, she’d admit that her deep attraction to him had nothing to do with whatever it was she’d drank and everything to do with him.
She wanted to touch him again.
“Don’t,” he all but shouted. His eyes were wide. She decided she liked his voice. It was deep and low.
Her eyes locked with his again, and she frowned. Was he scared of her? She smiled and reached for him.
“No, don’t—”
The warmth came back again, traveling from his neck, to her fingers, and through her like hot honey. It flowed slowly and straight to her core.